By Satish Aparajit
When exactly posters were introduced to the world is hard to say. The earliest known example of printed advertising in Britain dates back to 1477. Over time, posters have become a powerful tool to visually communicate messages and engage audiences. Jules Chéret is often credited as the father of the modern poster. But I’m not here to provide a history lesson on posters—the real issue I want to highlight is the rampant, often ugly misuse of posters by political parties, especially in India.
I’ve travelled extensively around the world, yet I’ve never seen anything like the “poster war” that takes place here. Political posters are plastered everywhere—on roadside walls, traffic signals, milestone blocks, even in the middle of busy crossings. Do we really need giant cut-outs and posters of the Prime Minister splashed across every corner of a city during his visit—or even otherwise?
What’s more puzzling is the practice of Chief Ministers placing their own faces next to the PM’s on these posters. Do citizens really need to be reminded of what their leaders look like? And it doesn’t stop there. Vantage points in cities are taken over by massive hoardings, often placed so carelessly that they obscure traffic signals. But who cares? After all, traffic rules rarely apply to politicians and bureaucrats. They speed through red lights with sirens blaring, their security convoys rudely pushing through common people waiting patiently at intersections.
Every small-time political hopeful believes that putting up their face next to local or national leaders will somehow fast-track their rise in politics. Birthday greetings, festival wishes, congratulatory messages for elections—even minor municipal wins—become opportunities for poster displays. This trend has exploded over the last decade. And when a political figure visits a city, thousands of party flags, banners, and cut-outs flood the streets, making it impossible to go anywhere without being bombarded by political visuals.
In places like Dehradun—and frankly, across the nation—roads are even broken or dug up to install these hoardings, worsening already terrible infrastructure. Ironically, in states boasting “double engine” governance, the situation is often worse.
So, what’s the solution? How do we clean up this visual pollution? Perhaps it’s time for people to take matters into their own hands—not by breaking the law, but by taking a firm stand. If posters, flags, and banners are obscuring road signs and traffic lights, local communities should feel empowered to remove them. We need to reclaim our public spaces.
Too often, obscured signals lead to traffic violations, and instead of addressing the root of the problem, traffic police seize the opportunity to issue fines. Try reasoning with them, and you’re likely to be met with indifference. The real burden always falls on the common person—never the politician or the bureaucrat.
It’s time we rise—not in anger, but with purpose. Let’s demand accountability. Let’s push back against this culture of cheap popularity. Let’s reclaim our cities from the clutter and chaos of political vanity.
(Satish Aparajit is a retired Wing Commander of the IAF and a Shaurya Chakra awardee)
